Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket exploded on the evening of May 28 during a hotfire test at Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The company described the incident as an anomaly and said all personnel were safe. No injuries were reported, and the root cause has not yet been determined.

The test was part of preparations for a planned launch of Amazon Project Kuiper satellites the following week. According to AP and Business Insider, the rocket was not carrying a payload at the time of the explosion. Still, the incident is a major setback for Blue Origin. New Glenn is the company’s heavy-lift vehicle and a key part of its effort to compete with SpaceX in commercial, government and lunar launch markets.

New Glenn stands about 98 meters tall and is designed to carry up to 45 metric tons to low Earth orbit. It is also included in NASA’s Launch Services II contract, which makes the failure relevant beyond a single commercial mission. The biggest unknown is the condition of the launch infrastructure. If LC-36 suffered major damage, Blue Origin’s return-to-flight timeline could slip by months. For now, the impact on Amazon’s satellite deployment and NASA-related missions will depend on the investigation and the repair schedule.